We asked A Death In Tehran editor-in-chief Kelly Golnoush Niknejad to recommend some of her favorite posts for those new to the site. Read more about A Death In Tehran here.

First-Person Accounts

Me and My Basij Friend
"Salman, my old childhood friend, and I were standing only 20 meters apart. His face was full of rage and animosity -- like a monster waiting to be set free. …" (Sept. 29, 2009)

Out on the Town
"What happens after the foreign journalists go to sleep? Supporters come out en masse, but not just for Mir Hossein Mousavi. …" (June 7, 2009)

Prayers Make History
"Friday Prayers, another occasion to come out into the streets. As with other such days, I felt a dual sense of fear and fervor, heightened by the uncertainty of whether people would turn out or not. I arranged to go with friends, because the past month's experiences have taught me that going alone is unsafe. I remembered to put my name and number on a piece of paper in my pocket so if anything happens to me, my family can be notified. …" (July 18, 2009)

Rattling the Cage
"'If he doesn't get in he'll speak from behind the gates.' I tried to imagine presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi addressing a rally of reformist students from behind the green painted steel of the Polytechnic University gate. …" (May 31, 2009)

Analysis

The Leaders of Iran's 'Election Coup'
"The rigged presidential election in Iran … has prompted protests both inside and outside Iran. There is, however, little understanding about the ideology and motivation behind the operation. …" (June 16, 2009)

The Political Groups
Tehran Bureau correspondent Muhammad Sahimi breaks down Iran's political structure, and analyzes the major political parties and their ideologies. (May 12, 2009)

The Supreme Leader's One Vote
"In many ways, Khamenei is handling the most important election in the past thirty years; his miscalculation could bring the regime close to a point of no return. Considering all the miscalculations that have been going on in Iran in recent years, the big question is this: Does the supreme leader know what he's doing by putting all his eggs in Ahmadinejad's basket?" (June 12, 2009)

The Ghosts of Elections Past
"It was a masterstroke of attack in the form of defense. In Iran's second televised presidential debate of this year's campaign, incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad delivered a blow to his main opponent Mir Hossein Mousavi…" (June 3, 2009)

Women and the Vote
"Women's issues continue to be the most controversial and the most paradoxical aspect of Iranian social life. On one hand, the Islamic dress code, or hijab, is compulsory for women and young girls; on the other hand, women constitute the majority of the college student population in Iran. On one hand, the conservative version of Islamic family values emphasizes their role as mothers; on the other hand, the government of the Islamic Republic has pursued family planning programs vigorously and with resounding success -- Iran has seen the sharpest decline in the fertility rate in the region. Women own their own businesses and work as pilots, engineers, farmers, workers, teachers and researchers; and yet, they face numerous challenges every day. …" (May 12, 2009)

The Internet: A Veil for Dating in Iran
"Some 70 percent of Iranians are under 30. As they come of age, with satellite television and the Internet, it has become an increasingly difficult task for the government to control what they see, hear and seek, especially when it comes to dating and sex. …" (Feb. 12, 2009; originally published May 2005)

The Nuclear Thing & Other Persian Riddles
"Over the years, everyone has heard the chants of 'Death to America' and 'Death to Israel' coming from the streets of Tehran, but those outside Iran never hear those chanting in the streets as they laugh and tease the organizers about the quality of the tea being served on the parade routes, or how after a while, the chant becomes all about how the chanters wish Iran was more like the United States. …" (Sept. 9, 2009)